507L5 AND CULTIVATION IN THE FLOWER GARDEN. 291 



some free-growing tree or shrub ; the hardy Pines, like Scotch, 

 Corsican, and Silver Firs, being excellent for this, as they thrive in 

 almost any earth, and often on surfaces from which the whole bed of 

 fertile soil has been removed. 



Apart from essential groundwork, there is the diversifying of ground 

 artificially, as may be seen in our parks, owing to the false idea that 

 you cannot make level ground picturesque with planting. Proof that 

 this is not impossible may be seen in many a level country planted by 

 Nature, as in the forest plain and in many a park and pleasure ground 

 in Germany, France, and Britain. Trees are given to us to get 

 this very variety of broken surface, and the idea that to make a place 

 picturesque we must imitate and usually badly imitate naturally 

 diversified ground is most inartistic. No doubt broken ground has 

 many charms, but so has the fertile plain, and the best way is to 

 accept and enhance the beauty of each variety of surface. To do so is 

 the planter's true work. In cities and suburbs there is often occasion 

 to conceal ugly objects, and earth if to spare may be used well and 

 wisely in raising at once the base of a plantation of young trees ; but 

 an enormous amount of labour given to making artificial mounds 

 might be saved without any loss, and with much gain to garden design. 



There are yet certain landscape-gardeners who make mounds or 



earth-pimples everywhere, regardless of the growth of the plants. If 



people would only spend more on good planting 



Artificial mounds, and less on trying to " diversify," as they call it, 



the surface, it would be better for our gardens. 



In many cases when planting time comes, so much effort has been 



spent on needless groundwork, that there are no means to spare for 



the best work of all in garden making, namely, good planting. Any 



one can make earth dumplings of the sort we see too many of, 



while planting to give enduring and beautiful effects requires a 



knowledge of trees and shrubs. 



The mania for foolish groundwork may be often seen, one of 



its results being the burial of the tree base, surrounded, perhaps, 



with a brick-lined pit-hole, as in St James's Park. 



In our public Shooting earth and rubbish to fill up the hollows 



parks. on such a precious space as Hampstead Heath is 



common, and as the surrounding district is busy 



in building, these attempts are, we fear, often the occasion of 



finding a shoot for earth and rubbish. The bringing in of such 



rubbish should be absolutely forbidden, as the only effect of this 



filling up of hollow places is to destroy the incidents of the ground, 



usually far prettier in form than the results of smug levelling up, or, 



worse still, the formation of such artificial mounds as we see examples 



of in the parks. Even the squares in our level Thames valley are not 



